At Target Center, seeing the Timberwolves give up on the game, some fans began to leave.
Inside the TNT broadcast room.
"This Eastern Kid seems to have a real knack for breaking records! Kenny, do you think he can break Chamberlain's single-game record of 55 rebounds if he keeps racking them up?"
"I don't know if he'll break Chamberlain's record, but he might break his own record of 32 assists again. He's already got 30."
Kenny Smith's words made Barkley pause for a moment, then he laughed too.
With one minute left in the game, Li Chen finally came off the court. He'd finally grabbed 56 rebounds.
"Congratulations to Chen for finally padding his stats to 56 rebounds," Barkley teased.
Smith nodded with a smile, then said, "Although this kind of stat-padding is hard to accept, we can't ignore Chen's rebounding ability."
Barkley nodded as well.
The Clippers' road game against the Timberwolves ended with the Clippers winning 101–90.
In this game, Wolf King Garnett scored 25 points, with 3 assists, 6 rebounds, and 1 block. Garnett played about as expected, but the other Timberwolves players put in performances that were hard to accept.
For the Clippers, the starters, including Elton Brand, all scored in double digits, but their shooting percentages were shockingly low.
Wang Zhizhi, who came on during garbage time, had a shooting percentage of around 50%.
Li Chen finished the game with 22 points, 33 assists, 56 rebounds, and 3 steals.
He went 4-for-6 from three and 5-for-12 from two.
Unsurprisingly, Li Chen was once again named the player of the game.
He received the Rebounding Monster skill.
He also broke two more records.
This time, Li Chen didn't attend the postgame press conference.
He knew those unscrupulous reporters would ask him nasty questions, like whether he was just padding his stats.
It wasn't like he wanted to! He'd had no choice.
He also used a bathroom break as an excuse to return to the five-star hotel where he was staying.
Back at the hotel, he opened his character panel.
[Name: Li Chen] [Team: Los Angeles Clippers (official player)] [Position: Shooting Guard, Point Guard] [Height: 199.8 cm] [Weight: 90.3 kg] [Wingspan: 210 cm] [Age: 21] [Skill: Resilience (passive talent skill)] [Open Three-Pointer A-rank.] [Passing D-rank] [Miracle Shot D-rank] [Flopping D-rank] [Rebounding Monster D-rank]
He also checked his attributes.
[Shooting Ability: 74] [Dribbling Ability: 51] [Passing Ability: 69] [Rebounding Ability: 65] [Defensive Ability: 70] [Speed Ability: 79] [Strength Ability: 75] [Intelligence: 86] [Physical Attributes: 99] [Rating: 79]
Seeing the numbers, Li Chen's lips curled slightly. His Shooting Ability had gone up by 9, and his rating had risen a little too. He was finally starting to make a name for himself.
Still, he couldn't get cocky. He had to keep working hard.
He opened the Functional Store and went to buy a Functional Drink to replenish his energy.
But when he opened the Functional Store, he noticed the icon beside the Functional Drink was lit up. He was a little puzzled.
He'd only broken one record himself, so why had the icon suddenly lit up?
After thinking it over, Li Chen figured that breaking his own record must also count toward his Legend Points.
What an unexpected surprise.
He eagerly clicked to buy the "Unrivaled" skill.
After he bought "Unrivaled," a more detailed skill description appeared before Li Chen.
[Skill: Unrivaled (Passive)] [Rank: S+] [Category: Driving Skill] [Description: Grants the host tremendous first-step explosiveness. Note: Triggering the skill consumes more energy.]
He frowned slightly at the note, but then realized it made sense.
Li Chen grinned mischievously. He really wanted to see Kobe's jaw drop. That would be hilarious.
Then he turned his attention to the third icon in the Functional Store.
It showed a man wearing a number-one Orlando Magic jersey: Tracy McGrady.
That pull-up jumper was a surefire way to win fans!
But when he saw that it cost ten Legend Points, his excitement was doused like a bucket of cold water, and he gave up on the idea.
The Timberwolves reporters were all in a bad mood during the interviews that day. Garnett, who'd been acting cocky and playing like a cripple, hadn't shown up, which left them disappointed.
Meanwhile, across the hall, the Clippers' Alvin Gentry was in high spirits. His team had won five straight.
Alvin Gentry's confident interview was in stark contrast to Flip Saunders's.
The next afternoon.
James Harden brought someone special with him.
She was a slightly plump Black woman who bore some resemblance to James Harden.
The woman greeted him, "Hello, Mr. Li... Chen."
She stumbled a little over Li Chen's name.
Then she apologized. "I'm sorry, sir. Your name is really hard to pronounce."
Li Chen smiled. He'd already guessed that the woman was probably James Harden's mother.
But he had no idea why she'd come to see him.
Was it about James Harden coming home late?
While Li Chen's thoughts wandered, the woman introduced herself:
"Sir, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Monja, Monja Willis. I'm James Harden's mother. I'm sorry to bother you, but I have a favor to ask."
A favor? Li Chen was surprised, but gestured for her to continue.
Monja Willis explained what she wanted.
Li Chen was taken aback. He never would've expected Ms. Monja Willis to ask him to train James Harden. He didn't know what to say.
He was only an amateur himself, and hadn't made a name for himself yet. What right did he have to teach anyone else?
"I'm sorry, Ms. Monja Willis, but I'm only a rookie. I'm not qualified to train James Harden," Li Chen said honestly.
Monja Willis didn't care whether he was a rookie or not. All she saw was that Li Chen had beaten the Timberwolves, a team with a superstar on its roster.
She'd also heard from James Harden about everything this Eastern man had done. She knew he was a good person.
This was an opportunity for James Harden. She wouldn't have minded getting down on her knees to beg.
In the end, Li Chen had no choice but to agree to Ms. Monja Willis's request.
After watching the mother and son leave, Li Chen's lips curled slightly. Interesting. He already had a perfect plan in mind.
But first, he needed enough money.
So he absolutely had to land that lifetime endorsement deal with Sketchers.
About an hour later, DeMar DeRozan arrived with his mother too.
Li Chen wondered whether the two mothers had planned it together.
Of course, Li Chen wouldn't play favorites, so...
Meanwhile, a sports TV station invited Reggie Miller of the Pacers.
The host asked, "Mr. Miller, what do you think of the Clippers' Eastern Kid, Li Chen?"
"I hear he's a pretty good young man," Reggie Miller replied with formulaic praise.
The host's lips curled slightly. He was about to get to the real question.
Before you continue